Feeder mechanism and method



Aug. 22, 1%? PERRY ET AL FEEDER MECHANISM AND METHOD GENTRY ERRY INVENTOR HERMOND G. JOHN H. P

Filed Feb. 25, 1966 United States Patent ()fifice 3,337,020 Patented Aug. 22, 1967 3,337,020 FEEDER MECHANISM AND METHOD John H. Perry, Doraville, and Victor Benatar and Hermond G. Gentry, Atlanta, Ga., assignors to The Mead Corporation, a corporation of Ohio Filed Feb. 25, 1966, Ser. No. 530,152 Claims. (Cl. 198-22) This invention relates to a feeder mechanism and method and more particularly to a feeder mechanism of the type wherein an endless conveyor is provided with a plurality of spaced lugs and wherein the mechanism is particularly well adapted for use in high speed packaging machines.

In one knOWn packaging machine for applying a wrapper-type blank about a group of articles to be packaged, a conveyor for supplying articles to be packaged is driven at a speed somewhat greater than the rate at which the articles to be packaged are conveyed through the packaging machine and a metering mechanism such as a star wheel is used to regulate the rate of flow of articles through the machine. After the rate of flow of primary packages is determined by the metering device, the articles may be divided into groups by horizontally disposed reciprocable plungers which move inwardly to separate a number of articles from an adjacent group of articles. Such a system of horizontally disposed plungers is disclosed in US. Patent 2,751,730, issued June 26, 1956, on an application filed by Hermond G. Gentry. In a machine of the type disclosed in Patent 2,751,730, it is necessary to withdraw the horizontally disposed reciprocable plungers before the folding of the package sidewalls can be completed. Furthermore, in such an arrangement as is disclosed in the aforementioned patent, it is necessary to employ skilled attendants when the machine is converted from one size of primary package to a different size or number of primary packages included in a single wrapper.

A principal object of this invention is the provision of an improved feeder mechanism which is simple and reliable and which also is arranged so as not to interfere with the folding of wrapper sidewalls when the mechanism is used in conjunction with a high speed packaging machine.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved feeder mechanism utilizing a minimum of parts and which is so constructed adjustment when the feeder is converted for use with different sizes of primary packages and for use with different-numbers of primary packages incorporated in a single wrapper.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of an improved simplified feeder mechanism which is coordinated with metering means and which is particularly well adapted for use with primary packages whose cross sectional shape and area are such that vacant space is provided immediately adjacent to the primary packages, such space being utilized according to this invention as a space for the disposition of a part of the feeder mechanism.

A further object of this invention is to provide an improved feeder mechanism which is specially adapted to safeguard the primary packages against undue relative movement between adjacent packages and thereby to minimize the chance for weakening or breakage thereof.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved method of feeding articles wherein vacant space adjacent an article is utilized initially as a place of entry of a device such as a lug and wherein relative movement between the article and lug is thereafter effected to align the lug with the center of the article and its path of travel as to require a minimum of according to this invention;

and simultaneously to effect spacing between the article and an immediately succeeding article.

The invention in one form as applied to a feeder mechanism is particularly adapted for conveying articles having vertically disposed axes and whose cross sectional area is provided adjacent thereto and comprises a metering means for regulating the rate of flow of the articles, a continuous conveyor having a feeder reach disposed immediately below the path of movement of the articles, a plurality of feeder lugs mounted on the conveyor in spaced relation therealong, the lugs being disposed to enter the vacant spaces provided due to the shape of the articles to be packaged, and guide means disposed alongside the path of movement of the articles, the guide means being arranged to cause transverse movement of the articles, such movement being effective to cause the articles to align their axes with the feeder lugs so that the feeder lugs are then disposed along the loci of the axis of the articles rather than to one side thereof.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein FIG. 1 is a side view of a feeder mechanism constructed FIG. 2 is a plan view of the left hand end portion of the mechanism as depicted in FIG. 1; and in which FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of a pair of adjacent feeder lugs mounted on a continuous conveyor which as shown is in the form of an endless chain.

While the feeder mechanism shown in the drawings and described herein is well adapted for use on a machine of the type disclosed in the aforementioned US. Patent 2,751,730, it will be understood that the invention is not limited thereto and that it has other applications as well. Furthermore, the packages which are formed on a machine of the type disclosed in the aforementioned patent and to which the feeder mechanism of this invention is applicable may be of the type disclosed in US. Patent 2,786,572, issued Mar. 26, 1957, on an application filed by Hermond G. Gentry, it will be understood that the feeder mechanism of this invention may be used in conjunction with machines for forming different types of packages than that disclosed in Patent 2,786,572.

With reference to the drawing, the numerals 1 and 2 are used to designate plates which are interconnected by cross pieces 3 and 4, cross piece 3 being afiixed to side plates 1 and 2 by suitable bolts designated by the numerals 5. In like fashion, cross plate 4 is affixed to side plates 1 and 2 by bolts designated by the numeral 6. A suitable base plate is utilized to interconnect the lower portion of side plates 1 and 2'but such plate is eliminated from the drawings for the sake of clarity.

The cans are supported on a runway 7 having slots 8 therein for receiving the lugs 36A and 36B along the feeder reach of the conveyor.

In order to insure that an adequate supply of primary packages such as the items designated at C are made available, such items are fed in on a conveyor at a rate somewhat in excess of the rate at which the items C are passed through the remaining portions of the machine. In FIG. 1 such a conveyor is designated by the numeral 9 and is rotat-ably mounted at one end on a suitable rotatable elernent designated at 10 which in turn is supported on horizontal shaft 11. 1

For the purpose of establishing a suitable rate at which the primary articles C are fed through by the feeder mechanism of this invention, suitable metering means is used and may take the form of a pair of star wheels 12 and 13 which are mounted on vertically disposed shafts 14 and 15 respectively. Star wheels 12 and 13 are proded with scalloped peripheral edges as is well known 1d are driven from a suitable gear box designated by re numeral 16.

Once the rate of flow of the primary articles C is estabshed by the metering means 12 and 13, the articles C re advanced by a continuous conveyor designated in the rawings generally by the numeral 17. Continuous feeder onveyor 17 comprises a feeder reach 18 and a return each 19 and is mounted at its left hand end as seen in TO. 1 on a suitable sprocket 20 on shaft 21 which is upported at its ends by side plates 1 and 2. At its right land end as viewed in FIG. 1, the conveyor 17 is mounted m sprocket 22 which is mounted on shaft 23 which in urn is supported at its ends on suitable mechanism which .s not shown In order properly to coordinate the transverse movenent of the continuous conveyor 17 with rotation of the netering means 12 and 13, the sprocket 20 is interconnected with the gear box 16 by means of a coupling shaft 24.

For the purpose of providing support for the return reach 19 of conveyor 17, a suitable idler sprocket 25 is mounted for rotation on shaft 26 which in turn is supported at its ends by suitable support means not shown in the drawings.

Tension of conveyor 17 is adjustable by means of idler sprocket 27 rotatably mounted on stub shaft 28 supported by arm 29. As is apparent in FIG. 1, arm 29 is pivotally mounted on pin 30 and the position of arm 29 is determined by locking nut 31 which cooperates with a threaded bolt 32 disposed in slot 33 formed in a part of arm 29. Bolt 32 is afiixed in any suitable manner to sup.- port plate 34 secured to suitable support means 35. Thus, the desired tension of continuous conveyor 17 is determined by adjustment of the angular position of arm 29 about pivot 30. When the desired adjustment is achieved nut 31 is tightened.

In order to provide support for substantially the entire length of the feeder reach 18 of conveyor 17, support means 35 is provided and arranged as shown. Such means comprises a pair of support tracks 35A and 35B which are disposed immediately below and adjacent to the continuous conveyor 17.

According to the one feature of this invention, the space immediately adjacent to the primary articles C is utilized as a space in which suitable feeder lugs designated in the drawings by the numerals 36 may enter as depicted for example in FIG. 2. Thus, as is shown in FIG. 2, lug 36B is to one side of the path of movement of can C1. Similarly, lug 36A is disposed on a corresponding side of the can occupying the position depicted at C2. Thus, according to a feature of the invention, the vacant space that is adjacent to the articles such as C1 and C2 due to the circular or other similar shape thereof, is conveniently utilized as space for entry of feeder lugs such as 36A and 36B.

'If the feeder lugs such as 36A and 36B were allowed to remain in the relative positions depicted in FIG. 2 in connection with cans located at C1 and C2, there would be a tendency for the cans to rotate in a clockwise direction about their axes as the articles moved from left to right along the feeder reach 18 of the continuous conveyor 17 Such rotational movement would tend to cause adjacent articles C to grind one against the other. If the articles are provided with paper or other labels, such labels would probably be damaged by such relative rotation. Furthermore, if the primary articles are bottles rather than cans, rotation of one bottle relative to an adjacent bottle tends to cause grinding of one against the other and results in weakening thereof. The internal pressure within the bottles may then cause an explosion thereof.

Thus, in accordance with another feature of the invention, an improved method and means are provided for causing the axes of the primary articles C to align themselves with their associated feeder lugs such as 36A and 36B. As shown in the drawings, such means may take the form of guides 37, 38 and 39. As is apparent in FIG. 2, guides 37-39 are curved at the portions thereof designated by the numerals 40, 41 and 42. Thus, as the articles C move from left to right as shown in FIG. 2 for example, transverse movement is imparted thereto by the portions 40, 41 and 42 of the guides 37-39 so that as the articles move from the position designated at C1 and C2 to that designated at C3 and C4, for example, the axes of the articles are moved into alignment with their associated feeder lugs 36A and 36B. Once the articles arrive at the points represented at C3 and C4, there is no further tendency for the feeder lugs 36A and 36B to impart rotation to the primary articles about their vertical axes. Thus, according to a feature of the invention, a simple and efficient feeder mechanism is provided wherein advantage is taken of the vacant space adjacent to primary articles due to the configuration thereof and at the same time means are provided for preventing rotation of the articles about their vertical axes and thereby for eliminating damage which undoubtedly would resulton account of such rotation.

Once a lug becomes aligned with the axes of the adjacent articles, it also effects a spacing operation therebetween due to the space required by the lug. Obviously, this action may be employed to establish or maintain spacing between adjacent article groups or, if desired, the spacing action could be provided between adjacent articles of a single group of articles.

While relative sidewise movement is effected by guides 37-39 in the arrangement shown in the drawings, it is apparent that other means may be employed. For example, the lugs 36A and 36B could be mounted for sidewise sliding movement on chains 49 and 50 and suitable fixed cams could be provided for engaging and shifting the lugs sidewise. Furthermore, for some applications of the invention, the lugs and associated conveyor system could be mounted above the articles C rather than below as shown in the drawings.

For the purpose of securing the feeder lugs 36A and 36B to the continuous conveyor 17, the lugs are provided with bolts 43 and 43A respectively which in turn cooperate with brackets 44 and 45 to support the feeder lugs 36A and 36B. Bracket 44 as shown in FIG. 3 is provided with an upstanding part 46 which is secured by welding or otherwise to link 47 formed as an integral part of the conveyor 17. In like fashion, bracket 45 is provided with an upstanding portion 47 which is secured by welding or otherwise to a link such as 48 formed as an integral part of the chain which constitutes the continuous conveyor 17. Thus, horizontal adjustment of the feeder lugs 36A and 363 may be effected by bolts 43 and 43A respectively. Once the desired position left to right is achieved, the bolts are tightened to secure the feeder lugs in the proper positions.

As is best shown in FIG. 3, the continuous conveyor 17 may comprise two parallel series of chain rollers such as are individually designated in FIG. 3 by the numerals 49 and 50. Thus, the chain made up of rollers 49 is supported along the feeder reach portion thereof by support track 35A while the portion of the continuous conveyor which is made up of links 50 is supported by support track 35B.

While the invention as shown in the drawings and as described above is applicable to wrappers for two rows of primary articles such as C, it will be understood that the invention is applicable to packages in which a single row of articles is packaged. When only one row of articles is to be packaged, one series of lugs such as 36A and 36B is disconnected or simply allowed to idle with all of the articles such as C being fed between guides 37 and 38 or between guides 38 and 39.

One advantage derived from this invention centers around the fact that a minimum of adjustment is necessary. For example, if a single row of articles C is being run through the machine and if it is desired to adjust the machine from one size of article C to another size of article or if the number of articles in a single row is to be changed, it is not necessary to make any changes in the feeder conveyor 17. Under these conditions, it is only necessary to change the star wheel such as 12 or 13 in order to convert the machine.

While a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, the invention is not limited thereto and it is intended in the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A feeder mechanism for conveying a plurality of tubular articles having vertically disposed axes along a predetermined path one behind the other in one general direction and at a predetermined rate, the cross sectional configuration of the articles being such that vacant space is provided adjacent the articles, said mechanism comprising metering means for controlling the rate of movement of the articles, a continuous conveyor having a feeder reach disposed immediately below and generally parallel to the path of movement of the articles, a plurality of feeder lugs mounted on said conveyor in spaced relation therealong, each of said lugs being disposed to enter a vacant space adjacent to and generally behind and to one side of the axis of one of the articles and being effective to engage and move such article along the predetermined path, and guide means disposed alongside the path of movement of the articles, said guide means being configured to engage and move the articles in a direction transverse to the predetermined path of movement thereof whereby the lugs are then disposed in approximate alignment with the axes of the articles rather than in the vacant spaces adjacent thereto.

2. A feeder mechanism according to claim 1 wherein the articles are supported on a runway having at least one slot therein in which said lugs ride along the feeder reach of said conveyor.

3. A feeder mechanism according to claim 1 wherein the conveyed articles are circular in cross section and wherein said metering means comprises a star wheel having a scalloped periphery and wherein said star wheel is disposed adjacent the entry end of the feeder reach of said conveyor.

4. A feeder mechanism according to claim 2 wherein said star wheel is rotat-ably mounted on a substantially vertical axis and wherein said conveyor is mounted on rotatable elements having substantially horizontal axes and wherein said star wheel and said conveyor are movable in coordination with each other.

5. A feeder mechanism according to claim 1 wherein support means is provided for the feeder reach of said conveyor throughout a substantial portion of the length thereof whereby movement of said feeder lugs is controlled in a predetermined fashion.

6. A feeder mechanism according to claim 1 wherein two rows of articles are fed simultaneously alongside each other and wherein said metering means, said feeder lugs and said guide means are arranged in pairs to cooperate respectively with said two rows of articles.

7. A feeder mechanism according to claim 5 wherein said metering means are disposed outwardly of the paths of movement of the two rows of articles and wherein said feeder lugs are arranged to enter vacant spaces on corresponding sides of adjacent pairs of articles.

8. A feeder mechanism according to claim 6 wherein said guide means are arranged to shift both rows of articles in a direction which is transverse to the path of movement of the articles and generally toward the loci of the paths of movement of said feeder lugs thereby to align the axes of the articles therewith.

9. A method of feeding along a predetermined path disposed in a generally horizontal planea series of articles whose axes are vertical and whose cross sectional configuration is such that vacant space exists adjacent the articles, the method comprising the steps of causing a feeder lug to enter the vacant space adjacent to and generally behind and to one side of the axis of one of the articles from a position outside of said horizontal plane, and thereafter effecting relative sidewise movement of the lug and article so as to establish approximate alignment of the lug and the axis of the article along the path of movement thereof.

10. A method according to claim 9 wherein the articles are shifted sidewise relative to the lug and wherein the path of movement of the lug follows the path of movement of the articles. 

1. A FEEDER MECHANISM FOR CONVEYING A PLURALITY OF TUBULAR ARTICLES HAVING VERTICALLY DISPOSED AXES ALONG A PREDETERMINED PATH ONE BEHIND THE OTHER IN ONE GENERAL DIRECTION AND AT A PREDETERMINED RATE, THE CROSS SECTIONAL CONFIGURATION OF THE ARTICLES BEING SUCH THAT VACANT SPACE IS PROVIDED ADJACENT THE ARTICLES, SAID MECHANISM COMPRISING METERINS MEANS FOR CONTROLLING THE RATE OF MOVEMENT OF THE ARTICLES, A CONTINUOUS CONVEYOR HAVING A FEEDER REACH DISPOSED IMMEDIATELY BELOW A GENERALLY PARALLEL TO THE PATH OF MOVEMENT OF THE ARTICLES, A PLURALITY OF FEEDER LUGS MOUNTED ON SAID CONVEYOR IN SPACED RELATION THEREALONG, EACH OF SAID LUGS BEING DISPOSED TO ENTER A 